GENERAL KOECH'S TOUR OF AINAMOI SENT SHOCK WAVES

By Kipsiele Arap Sugurut
Luocome, Kericho Town

The recent extensive tour of Ainamoi constituency in Kericho district by the populist retired former military boss has sent shockwaves and shivers down the spines of many Parliamentary hopefuls in the area.

The usual quietness of Ainamoi Constituency in Kericho district was last weekend interrupted with hysterical mood when the populist former deputy CGS Lt Gen (rtd) John Koech made an extensive tour of the area. This sparked off a lot of panic among Parliamentary aspirants and the incumbent MP alike.

Genera Koech, who is currently far much ahead in popularity and heading the pack of close to a dozen other aspirants for the Ainamoi Parliamentary seat, was given a rousing welcome wherever he went on a meet-the- people -mission.

He decried the under development of the agriculturally rich Ainamoi and promised to turn the sleeping constituency into a bastion of development. He assured the electorate of first class efficiency and most effective representation in the next Parlaiment.

Some of the things which disappointed the General were the slow pace which the construction of the new Kapchorariet Tea Factory was taking despite the land having been set aside and funds made available.

He said a lot of green tea leaves was going to waste due to lack of the processing factory within the locality, which could easily be accessed by the small scale tea farmers.

The tour took the General to Kapcheptororiet, Maso, Boiywek and Kipchimchim in Ainamoi Division and to parts of Soin Division. He was told that the stagnation of development in the area was caused by lack of effective leadership in the area at Parliamentary level

In response, the general promised to change the trend if elected to Parliament and that he would turn the sleepy Ainamoi Constituency to a bastion of massive development within the shortest possible period of time. This could be easily achieved if the people choose to work and cooperate with the government of the day.

Meanwhile, civic leaders in both Kericho Municipality and the County Council of Kipsigis have strongly condemned an unnamed politician who is said to have resorted to scandalous and malicious campaign to discredit the General. The politician has been telling the electorate that the General's candidature was a government sponsored project, and that he is being sponsored by President Mwai Kibaki and Narc-K

A source in Kericho confided that the malicious campaign and rumours against the General was the work of a disgruntled former MP for the area who wanted to be re-elected to parliament through back door due to his poor and disappointing track record of development. The spokesman David Kiptoo advised the electorate to ignore the rumours as the work of devilish minded cliques of unpopular leaders.

In Maso, the General was received by an enthusiastic crowd of women, youth, pupils and elders. Some of the women who danced to welcome him were heard shouting at the top of their voices that the General was like a "messiah and saviour"

Ainamoi constituency has had two MPs since its inception in the year 1996 when it was hived out of the former larger Belgut. Eng. Kipngeno Arap Ngeny, who served in the former KANU regime as the Minister for Water Development was elected the first MP in 1997, but whose tenure of office impacted negatively on the development of the area.

The former CID Director Noah N.Arap Too, the incumbent whose term has been shrouded by poor leadership both at home and at the Parliament levels replaced him.

Too leadership has caused stagnation in development in the constituency which covers Kericho Town and parts of the multinational tea estates and factories. The MP was recently listed as one of the former top senior government officials who had looted the 10,000 acres Kimwani ADC farm at Kimwani in South Nandi. One of the beneficiaries included former nominated MP Ezekiel Bargetuny, who together with his sons and daughter grabbed about 740 acres of Kimwani ADC farm. The MP got 100 acres with planted sugar cane which he later sold to Chemolel Sugar Company and realized close to one million shillings.

The sitting MP was last week reported to have turned violence and allegedly assaulted one of his opponents Mr.Paul Chirchir in a bar at Kapsoet market.

Relation between the Ainamoi electorates and their MP is reported to have gone sour with the legislator being given cold shoulder wherever he went. He is being accused for poorly disbursing the CDF, HIV/AIDS and CACC funds.

Ainamoi now leads other electoral area in under development while the MP is on the receiving end. Schools in the constituency performed poorly in all the national exams of the year 2005